The Eddies open for The UK SUBS

Hey Space Cadets! Well I have some good news and some bad news; the good news is I have just gotten back from an amazing trip to Loch Ness and the Isle of Skye and will be going on another trip to Edinburgh this coming weekend! The bad news is I haven’t finished my London posts nor have had the time to write anything new (on account of school catching up with me). I promise to have the final entry of my trip to London this week and to have Loch Ness and Skye by the beginning of next. In the meantime here’s some video of a couple of punk concerts I went to while over here! the first is from a UK SUBS gig I saw the second week I was in Dundee. One of the opening acts was a local band P.P.C. who played a phenomenal set! the sound doesnt do them justice! the second and third are from “From the Jam”; made up of original Jam mambers Bruce Foxton (bass) and Rick Buckler (Drums) with Russell Hastings on guitar and vocals. The night I saw them, the original drummer was ill so the drummer from Big Country joined in to back them up. The Jam were not your typical punk band and blended elements of R&B and old school ’60s rock and roll to ignite a movement known as “Mod Revival”. I’ll be seeing their ex-lead singer Paul Weller later on this month and will do a full concert review!

I hope this satisfies the hungry masses for now! Again sorry about the delay; but I promise to be squared away by the end of the week!

P.P.C.

From the Jam

From The Jam (Better version courtesy of daisydundee)

8 days left in New Zealand.

Sunday’s forecast for Wellington: 60 degrees & sunny.
Monday’s forecast for Wellington: 55 degrees & rainy.

And of course, today had to be spent studying. However, I did attempt to get as much studying outside as possible. And for the first time ever (and probably the only time), I got a sunburn while studying for my fall semester exams. The weather here is getting better and better but its even better in Australia and Fiji, making me really excited for what will be the hottest November of my life.

But for the moment…its back to the books and some aloe on my arms.

Till tomorrow,

Liam

9 days left in New Zealand

Today, I had an absolutely fantastic classic New York style pizza. One of the things that can instantly remind me of home is a thin, crispy piece of dough with tomatoes and cheese on top.

The weather is still fantastic and of course, I’m still studying.

- Liam

10 days left in New Zealand.

Today was probably the most beautiful day I’ve seen in Wellington. Of course it’s just my luck that as the weather turns absolutely gorgeous, my final exam is just around the corner and study had to commence. After a few short hours in the library, I caught another voice recital at the NZSM (New Zealand school of Music) before just laying in the sun waiting for Natalie to get done with her exam so we could run downtown to run some errands.

Tonight, we went out to dinner at a nice Thai restaurant with a mix of Kiwi and American friends to celebrate our time together here organised by Allen, my across-the-street-downstairs neighbor. It was a nice dinner, but highlights the current theme of Landcross Street: leaving. People have already left and its shocking to know that I have only a week left in Wellington. Who knew that four months could go so fast?

Cheers,

Liam

China is a “developing” country so any visitor end up in some sort of strange cross section between the modern and the old. There are a few new commodities coming into this country that Chinese people don’t seem to grasp. Why do Chinese people wear high heels on the sports track and why do they always use umbrellas when it is sunny out? If something seems strange it is easy to write it off, but when it comes to how they eat their bananas, I think they may have us beaten.

Someone may think I am kidding, but I am serious. The “normal way” has always been to grab from the top stem and pull down; seemed logical to me. In China they pinch the bottom and peel it open. The first time I saw this I thought that they just “didn’t understand” bananas, yet. I was curious and tried it their way, and much to my disbelief, its actually easier. Even if its unripe, it just pops right open every time. Try it sometime, you might not want to go back to the old way.

Thank you China, and your funny eating habits, for showing me a new way, and for getting rid of a few of my biases.

Below is a few pictures of the method described above.

11 days left in New Zealand.

Unlike the last two days, today was packed with new adventures in Wellington. Lauren and I left Landcross street this morning and after a few stops at the grocery store and Le Moulin, a French bakery, we met Jacob at the ferry terminal. The three of us boarded the ferry and made our way across the harbour to Sommes Island. This wildlife refuge was once home to internment camps for anyone who sounded foreign to the Kiwis during both world wars. We spent almost three hours exploring the island. It was so beautiful, mostly for the fact that it is so untouched by mankind. We saw weta bugs, exotic birds, a baby blue penguin and of course, sheep. Lauren and I were excited to hear Jacob say that he saw some “really awesome, weird swan thing” but were so disappointed when we discovered that it was merely a Canadian goose. Oh well…

The last time I explored with Jacob & Lauren was in the Christchurch botanical gardens, back in September when we went kayaking. These are two of my favourite days in New Zealand. Jacob has been our unofficial tour guide in Wellington. Every day with Jacob starts with a planned activity and is followed by several random ones scattered all over the city. Lauren and I can always count on Jacob for a great day.

After exploring the island as best we could, we returned home for dinner before heading back to town to celebrate Guy Fawkes Day. Popularised by the movie V for Vendetta, this holiday is celebrated only in New Zealand and the United Kingdom. It celebrates the day in 1605 when Guy Fawkes, a Catholic in England, planned to blow up Parliament. He failed, and this is celebrated annually on 5 November with fireworks and festivals. The fireworks were great to see, since I had missed July 4th at home, and the carnival was fun as well. Topped off with a chai latte at Enigma, one of my favourite cafes, this was a fantastic day in Wellington.

Blog in brief: Jacob is Wellington’s most enthusiastic tour guide and the weather’s finally good enough to give me a sunburn.

Until tomorrow,

Liam

12 days in New Zealand.

Today, Elizabeth and I cracked open a container of Peanut Slab ice cream. A “Peanut Slab” is one of Elizabeth’s and my favorite New Zealand candy bar that can best be explained as a a Mr. Goodbar on steroids. The ice cream did not disappoint. After a long day of gift shopping, this was the perfect end. We recalled the amazing food that we have shared together here in 6A, something I’ll miss a lot, especially since Elizabeth leaves for the South Island on Saturday. While I’ll still be able to eat some of the cuisine I’ve made here in New Zealand back at UD, there are some things that just won’t be the same. Besides the obvious brand and ingredient differences (unless I get the Kiwi pie shop in New York to ship me a huge supply…) cooking for myself won’t be the same. I’m so used to cooking while the 6:00 news is on and I really enjoy cooking for another person. Maybe someone in HKLZ will want to cook together…

Blog in brief: Cooking is better when you’re in New Zealand with Elizabeth.

Cheers,

Liam

13 days left in New Zealand.

Today, I had a very simple, new experience. However, I was able to see Elizabeth and Emily perform in a pretty sweet dance performance. There were a number of different styles of dance displayed, including break dancing, Malaysian dance, hip-hop and Capoeira, a Brazilian martial art/dance. This was the first time I had been to something that resembled a campus event and it was great. There are so many events that I attend on Delaware’s campus and it was fantastic to get that feeling from Victoria after four months
I also had the opportunity to hear Saint-Saens Violin Concerto performed by my neighbor at his second year recital. Just like the dance event, it was fantastic to be attending recitals again. When at home, I have to attend 20 recitals a semester, which I typically dread. However, going to just two here has made me realise how much I actually miss them.

In short, dance + violin = missing Delaware.

Till tomorrow,

Liam

14 days left in New Zealand.

Each day from now till 16 November, I’m trying to do at least one new thing in New Zealand each day and post a new picture from somewhere in New Zealand that I haven’t put up before.

Today’s new activities:

* Coffee at Espressoholic.
* Eating spaghetti on toast with cheese.
* Seeing the Wellington Youth Orchestra perform.

Something new tomorrow!

- Liam

Wellington has the highest number of cafes & bars per capita anywhere in the world. And yet, I’ve been to the same 15 restaurants, bars and coffee shops since I’ve been here. So yesterday when Kevin walked into the lounge and said “let’s go out to dinner,” Elizabeth and I couldn’t think of a reason not to. It was that or left over ziti.

We headed to Sweet Mother’s Kitchen, a restaurant that never seems to have an empty seat inside. This restaurant serves traditional American fare, and I think we were all excited to have a bit of comfort food. Chips & salsa, spinach dip and hush puppies soon filled our table, followed by a homemade mac & cheese, fried chicken, dirty rice and slaw. I have not been so satisfied with a meal in a while. The only thing missing from this wannabe American restaurant was Heinz Ketchup. But their horseradish laden cocktail sauce was good enough for me and we left there extremely full and happy.

Tonight, Elizabeth, Maggie and I headed downtown again, to Flying Burrito Brothers, Wellington’s only TexMex restaurant. After another satisfying meal (shredded beef burritos this time) the three of us went to see the Royal New Zealand Ballet perform Peter Pan. I was once again impressed by the quality of the performance. Totally worth more than the student rate of $20 that we were luckily enough to pay for it.

Happy Halloween!

- Liam